Growing up in an Israeli household, I was taught about the Holocaust extensively ever since I was young. Whether it be from my parents, from Hebrew school, or from my grandparents, I heard amazing stories about families and their experiences, in some cases, surviving the Shoah and, in others, how they lost their lives. So of course, I knew the basics: Six million Jews were killed, most of it happened in Poland, the Germans were in control of it, and that very few survived. However because of our modern day society, I was very desensitized to the entire thing. I didn’t see how it affected me and why it mattered anymore if it happened seventy years ago.

I’ve heard the word Auschwitz since I knew about the Holocaust. I knew it was where most Jews died but I had no idea how systematic and atrocious it really was. When we arrived, I felt sick as I set my eyes on this disgusting place. What made it worse is that there were food shops, stores, and other things you might see at a festival. How could they put food shops in front of Auschwitz? I will never understand how they could commercialize and profit off of the place where over 1.1 million Jews died. Another aspect that displeased me at Auschwitz was a group of Polish kids who pointed at our Israeli flags, took pictures of us and laughed at us. When my friend and I went up to them they just hid behind their teacher. When we saw them again they covered their faces and made us feel like we were inferior even when we were touring the place where so many Jews died. We proceeded to go to the book of over 4 million names of Jews that were killed. I found many of my family members. It was very difficult to see their actual names in the book. My family was killed by the Nazi’s- it wasn’t just a story anymore.

This trip has taught me so much about both my families past and about the Holocaust as a whole. When we were in Auschwitz, I learned that many of my direct family members were killed. In fact, this is what sparked me to begin to put all the pieces together. In the beginning of my journey, I felt numb and emotionless and didn’t see how these events played a role in my personal life. The next thing that made it seem real was the pool of ashes in Auschwitz. It showed just how little regard for human life the Nazis had- specifically for the lives of Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, and people who weren’t anti-Semites.  In many cultures ashes are sacred.  But to see a group of people pour them into a pool of water really shows how inhumane their ways were. The one thing that affected me the most was the letter my dad wrote me that we was given to me in Tarnov. In this letter he told me that I was named after my great cousin Naomi who was gassed by the Nazis. When Naomi’s mother asked where her daughter was, the Nazi official pointed to the smoke rising out of the chimney. Naomi’s mother (my great aunt) lost her mind with grief after she survived the Holocaust. To know that I have been named after a four year old girl that didn’t get to live her life makes me feel as though I am obligated to live the life she never had the chance to live. It showed me how truly horrible the Shoah was. When I get home I want to spread the word to teach people how awful the Holocaust was. There are so many people who are unaware, uneducated, or deny the Holocaust as a whole.  To conclude, the ignorance of people is what leads to repeating the evil history of the past.